Transaction arbiter system and method

ABSTRACT

A transaction arbiter system and method is disclosed which incorporates a merchant function database under control of a transaction arbiter that permits merchants to interact in an automated way with bids generated by other merchants. Rather than utilizing fixed price schedules as taught by the prior art, the present invention permits each merchant to define a set of functions which describe how the merchant will respond to a customer request-for-quote for a given product or service. These merchant functions interact with both the customer request-for-quote and the results of other merchant functions to generate a dynamic real-time bidding system which integrates competition among merchant bidders to achieve an optimal consumer price for a given product or service.

CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This is a continuation application of a non-provisional applicationhaving an application number Ser. No. 14/281,070 and a filing date ofMay 19, 2014, which is a continuation of a non-provisional applicationhaving an application number Ser. No. 14/080,610 and a filing date ofNov. 14, 2013, which is a continuation of non-provisional applicationwith application number Ser. No. 13/938,113 and a filing date of Jul. 9,2013, which is a continuation application of a non-provisionalapplication having an application number Ser. No. 11/190,991 and afiling date of Jul. 27, 2005, which is a non-provisional application ofa provisional application having an application number of 60/681,567,and a filing date of May 16, 2005. These applications are incorporatedby reference herewith.

PARTIAL WAIVER OF COPYRIGHT PROTECTION

All of the material in this patent application is subject to copyrightprotection under the copyright laws of the United States and of othercountries. As of the first effective filing date of the presentapplication, this material is protected as unpublished material.

However, permission to copy this material is hereby granted to theextent that the copyright owner has no objection to the facsimilereproduction by anyone of the patent documentation or patent disclosure,as it appears in the United States Patent and Trademark Office patentfile or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION Field of Invention

The present invention generally relates to transaction brokeringsystems, specifically systems which permit consumers to interact withmerchants over a communication network to achieve brokered deals forservices or merchandise. The present invention augments the prior art bypermitting an independent transaction arbiter to act as an interfacebetween consumers and merchants and permit merchant bidding functions tocompete within a merchant function database to optimize competitionamong merchants and present the optimal possible bid to arequest-for-quote generated by the customer for a requested product orservice.

Description of Related Arts

Overview (0100)

The prior art is generally illustrated in FIG. 1 (0100), wherein aconsumer (0101) interacts with a computer interface (0102) tocommunicate (0103) the specifications of a requested item (0104) to amerchant search engine (0105). This request generally specifies only thedescription (part number, item name, etc.) of the requested item (0104).The merchant search engine has previously interacted with a number ofmerchants (0107, 0108) to interrogate price data associated with anumber of available items, combining this information into a merchantprice database (0106). This merchant price database (0106) isinterrogated by the merchant search engine (0105) to provide theconsumer (0101) with a list of available prices (normally sorted withlowest price first) available from the list of available merchants(0107, 0108).

Deficiencies in the Prior Art

The major deficiency with the prior art is that the merchant price data(0106) is generally a static quantity and is merely sorted and displayedto the consumer (0101) based on the generation of an item price searchrequest (0104). The merchants (0107, 0108) generally have no opportunityto update their pricing information in response to pricing informationgenerated by other merchants. As a result, the customer (0101) generallydoes not obtain an optimal price, as there is no active cross biddingbetween merchants, as there would be in a reverse auction environment.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION Objectives of the Invention

Accordingly, the objectives of the present invention are (among others)to circumvent the deficiencies in the prior art and affect the followingobjectives:

(1) The ability for consumer to initiate an unattended real-time pricecompetition (bid) from participating merchants in order to obtain thelowest price possible for any service, product or products available forsale anywhere.

(2) Provide a transaction arbiter system which permits active biddingfrom a variety of merchants to permit cross bidding in response to acustomer request-for-quote (RFQ).

(3) Permit merchants to define merchant functions to interact with otherfunctions generated by competing merchants to achieve a dynamic biddingprocess between merchants in response to a customer request-for-quote(RFQ).

(4) Permit customers to provide additional quote constraint information,such as zip code and other locale information to constrain the biddingprocess.

(5) Permit customers to incorporate additional constraint informationinto the bidding process with the merchant functions using thisinformation as a consideration in generating a bid quote.

(6) Permit customers to achieve best optimal bid results in a real-timemerchant/manufacturer dynamic bidding environment.

While these objectives should not be understood to limit the teachingsof the present invention, in general these objectives are achieved inpart or in whole by the disclosed invention that is discussed in thefollowing sections. One skilled in the art will no doubt be able toselect aspects of the present invention as disclosed to affect anycombination of the objectives described above.

System Information Flow (0200)

The present invention is generally illustrated in the system informationflow of FIG. 2 (0200) wherein the consumer (0201) communicates (0202) arequest-for-quote (RFQ) (0203) that fully describes the product item orservice being requested and any parameters associated with the bid whichmay restrict the actual transaction, such as zip code, store/productproximity, maximum price, color, etc., and a plethora of otherparameters unique to a given product or service. This RFQ is transmittedto a transaction arbiter (0204) which has previously communicated with amerchant pool (0205) comprising a number of merchants (0206, 0207) tocollect merchant functions (0211, 0212) which describe how each merchant(0206, 0207) will respond to quote requests from customers (0201) andalso how each merchant (0206, 0207) will respond to bids from othermerchants.

These merchant functions (0211, 0212) are assembled in a merchantfunction database (0208) maintained by the transaction arbiter (0204).The transaction arbiter (0204) accepts request-for-quotes (0203) andapplies these requests to the merchant function database (0208) toachieve either (a) a firm quote (bid) (0209) on the RFQ, (b) multiplebids on the RFQ, or (c) no bids on the RFQ. This information istransferred back to the consumer (0201) who has the option of eitheraccepting the firm quote bid(s) or rejecting the firm quote bid(s).

System Overview (0300)

A generalized system overview of the present invention is summarized inthe illustration of FIG. 3 (0300) wherein the consumer (0301) interactswith a computer interface (0302) which communicates with a remote hostcomputer system (0310) typically comprising the transaction arbiter(0311) and merchant function database (0312) both of which operate underthe control of a computer server (0313) or other computer apparatus. Thehost computer system (0310) also interacts with one or more merchants(0320) as described previously to permit the merchant function database(0312) to be updated with merchant bidding functions.

Key to the advantages presented by the present invention is the abilityof the merchant (0320) to deposit a FUNCTION (not just a staticservice/price or product/price pair) in the merchant function database(0312) which describes HOW the merchant will respond to bids placed bycompeting merchants in response to request-for-quotes (RFQs) presentedby the consumer (0301) to the host computer system (0310). Traditionalmerchant sales interfaces limit the scope of merchant interaction tosimply providing the consumer with the current price for theproduct/service specified in the RFQ. This prior art model fails toprovide any basis for interaction between merchants, and thus limits theability of merchants to dynamically adjust to changing market pricingconditions. Additionally, prior art fixed-price merchant systems preventthe consumer from obtaining the optimal price for a givenproduct/service, since these prior art systems do not incorporate anyknowledge cross pollination between competing merchants.

Arbitrated Brokering Method (0400)

This system may have incorporated an arbitrated brokering method asillustrated generally in FIG. 4 (0400) wherein the transaction arbiteroperates with the following steps:

having the consumer generate a request-for-quote (RFQ) and communicatesaid RFQ to an arbiter (0401);

having said arbiter interrogate merchant functions that have beencollected from a merchant pool and arbitrating the lowest current bidsatisfying the RFQ (0402) (this step is often achieved by performing anunattended real-time price competition (bid) between the variousmerchants and arbitrating the lowest current bid satisfying the RFQ);

having said arbiter generate a firm bid and communicating said firm bidto said consumer (0403);

if consumer accepts said firm bid (0404), having said arbiter notifysaid merchant of said firm bid acceptance (0405); otherwise rejectingsaid firm bid and notifying said merchants of bid rejection.

One skilled in the art will recognize that these steps may in somecircumstances be augmented, rearranged, omitted, and/or substituted,with no loss of function with respect to application in the field of thepresent invention.

Transaction Arbiter Method (0500)

The present invention may incorporate a transaction arbiter method asillustrated generally in FIG. 5 (0500) wherein the transaction arbiteroperates with the following steps:

Extracting bid parameters from the consumer request-for-quote (RFQ)(0501). In this step any constraints placed on the bidding process bythe consumer are extracted from the RFQ and prepared for presentation toa variety of merchant functions;

Initializing a merchant function database search index (0502);

Applying the extracted RFQ parameters to an indexed merchant functionobtained from the merchant function database (0503);

Generating an indexed Bid Result from the indexed merchant functionafter applying the extracted RFQ parameters (0504);

Incrementing the merchant function database index (0505);

Determining if all merchant functions have been scanned, and if not,continuing to scan the remaining merchant functions (0506);

Sorting the Bid Results and merging these results with the consumer RFQparameters (0507);

Determining if a stable set of Bid Results have been obtained, and ifnot, recycling the current set of consumer RFQ parameters (with mergedBid Results) into the Merchant Function database to determine a terminalset of Bid Results (0508). This step permits merchants the ability torebid on a given RFQ based on the results of bids placed by othermerchants;

Notifying the consumer of the terminal set of Bid Results and permittingthe consumer the option of accepting or rejecting a firm bid offer froma given merchant (0509);

Notifying one or more merchant(s) of the consumer acceptance orrejection of their bid offer (0510). This feedback notification may insome circumstances permit the merchant the ability to reformulate theirmerchant function associated with the current bid parameters to enabletheir successful bidding in future RFQs posted by other consumers.

One skilled in the art will recognize that these steps may in somecircumstances be augmented, rearranged, omitted, and/or substituted,with no loss of function with respect to application in the field of thepresent invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a fuller understanding of the advantages provided by the invention,reference should be made to the following detailed description togetherwith the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional prior art system incorporating pricebrokering over the Internet.

FIG. 2 illustrates a preferred exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention as applied to an arbitrated transaction brokering system.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary simplified system block diagram of thepresent invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary flowchart implementing a preferredexemplary embodiment of the invention method as applied to an arbitratedbrokering method.

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary flowchart implementing a preferredexemplary embodiment of the invention method as applied to transactionarbiter method.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary data flow diagram associated with apresently preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary data flow diagram associated with apresently preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 illustrates an exemplary data flow diagram associated with apresently preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates an exemplary information flow diagram illustratinghow the present invention interacts with customer RFQs to produce lowerpurchase prices.

FIG. 10 illustrates an exemplary system diagram illustrating how thepresent invention interacts with consumer RFQs, merchant data, andmanufacturer data.

FIG. 11 illustrates an exemplary flowchart useful in someimplementations of the present invention illustrating user loginprocedures for merchant, consumer, and manufacturers.

FIG. 12 illustrates an exemplary detail flowchart useful in someimplementations of the present invention illustrating user login/processprocedures for consumers.

FIG. 13 illustrates an exemplary detail flowchart useful in someimplementations of the present invention illustrating merchantlogin/process procedures.

FIG. 14 illustrates an exemplary detail flowchart useful in someimplementations of the present invention illustrating manufacturerlogin/process procedures.

FIG. 15 illustrates an exemplary overview flowchart detailing anexemplary bidding process in response to a customer RFQ.

FIG. 16 illustrates an exemplary detail flowchart detailing an exemplarybidding process in response to a customer RFQ.

FIG. 17 illustrates an exemplary flowchart implementing a preferredexemplary embodiment of the invention method as applied to a brokeringfunction method.

FIG. 18 illustrates an exemplary flowchart implementing a preferredexemplary embodiment of the invention method as applied to a pricearbitration method.

FIG. 19 illustrates an exemplary flowchart implementing a preferredexemplary embodiment of the invention method as applied to an alternateprice arbitration method.

FIG. 20 illustrates exemplary screen shot diagrams generated by anexemplary embodiment of the present invention implementing a one-shotbidding function.

FIG. 21 illustrates exemplary screen shot diagrams generated by anexemplary embodiment of the present invention implementing a sequentialbidding function.

FIG. 22 illustrates additional exemplary screen shot diagrams generatedby an exemplary embodiment of the present invention implementing asequential bidding function.

FIG. 23 illustrates an exemplary code fragment implementing onepreferred brokering function method embodiment useful in some preferredembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 24 illustrates an exemplary code fragment implementing an alternatepreferred brokering function method embodiment useful in some preferredembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 25 illustrates an exemplary code fragment implementing onepreferred bidding function method embodiment useful in some preferredembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 26 illustrates an exemplary code fragment implementing an alternatepreferred bidding function method embodiment useful in some preferredembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 27 illustrates an exemplary code fragment implementing a secondalternate preferred bidding function method embodiment useful in somepreferred embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 28 illustrates an exemplary code fragment implementing a preferredminimum value bidding function method embodiment useful in somepreferred embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 29 illustrates an exemplary code fragment implementing onepreferred embodiment of a price bid price percentage reduction functionuseful in some preferred embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 30 illustrates an exemplary code fragment implementing onepreferred embodiment of a price bid arbitration function useful in somepreferred embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 31 illustrates an exemplary flowchart implementing a preferredexemplary embodiment of the invention method as applied to an arbitratedbrokering method.

FIG. 32 illustrates an exemplary code fragment implementing bidinitialization functions useful in some preferred exemplary embodimentsof the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

While this invention is susceptible of embodiment in many differentforms, there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described indetailed preferred embodiment of the invention with the understandingthat the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification ofthe principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the broadaspect of the invention to the embodiment illustrated.

The numerous innovative teachings of the present application will bedescribed with particular reference to the presently preferredembodiment, wherein these innovative teachings are advantageouslyapplied to the particular problems of a TRANSACTION ARBITER SYSTEM ANDMETHOD. However, it should be understood that this embodiment is onlyone example of the many advantageous uses of the innovative teachingsherein. In general, statements made in the specification of the presentapplication do not necessarily limit any of the various claimedinventions. Moreover, some statements may apply to some inventivefeatures but not to others.

Overview

The present invention describes the design of a large-scale retailshopping system making heavy use of the Universal Product Code (UPC)Structure and/or RFID's. The system is designed to manage, collect,connect, create, share, disseminate, compute, analyze, capture, record,store, move, retrieve and integrate information, data, functions,algorithms and applications as an individual tool and source for theconsumer to find and conveniently shop for anything that is availablefor sale anywhere, and better yet, to obtain the best price possible, ata local market level, in real-time, traceable, portable and useable atthe point of activity. The system is designed to produce a much moreeffective, flexible, reliable, satisfying and rewarding results than anyof the existing shopping systems. This system is a comprehensiveapproach that allows consumers to take advantage of innovativetechnologies and devices that deliver new services and information. Thissolution is designed to allow the consumer to enhance their shoppingexperience in a variety of ways.

Contrast to Prior Art

Existing Search engine systems or price comparison web sites, index tensof millions of products involving tens of thousands of locations and awide range of prices. They answer hundreds of thousands of queries everyday. Despite the importance of search engines and electronic marketsystems on the web, very little research has been done on them to makethem operational at the point of activity in real-time. Due to the rapidadvance in technology and means for communication of data, creating ashopping system of this nature is very different now. The presentinvention provides an in-depth description of a large scale shoppingsystem.

Apart from the problems of scaling traditional search techniques to dataand information of this magnitude, there are new technical challengesinvolved with using the additional resources and means to produce betterresults. The present invention addresses the question of how to build apractical large-scale system, which can exploit the opportunitiespresent in the retail market.

Introduction

The trade industry offers daily new challenges for consumers andretailers in shopping, marketing, competition, promotions, advertising,and sale techniques. People are likely to shop around until they obtainthe best value for their money. At the present time this is achievedthrough physical cost comparison at different locations, through printedadvertisements and promotions, coupons, radio and TV commercials, etc.In contrast, existing automated Internet based search engines offer alimited field for cost comparison and normally return low quality andunreliable “matches”. Retailers on the other hand are constantlydevising strategies to attract consumers in to their place of business,such as store loyalty cards, portable shopping systems, self-check outs,and the recent introduction of RFID readers, etc. While all of this ishappening, the technology landscape is evolving rapidly to extend andenhance innovation and practicality to the point of business activity.Advanced data capture, mobile computing, wireless infrastructure, mobilesystems software and global positioning systems are the new elements ofthis new landscape. This is a large-scale search and operating systemwhich resolves all of the problems of existing systems and more. Itmakes especially heavy use of the Universal Product Code (UPC) structureand integrates all of the above mentioned technical elements to providemuch better results.

Existing Price Comparison Internet Based Search Engines

Search engines of this type have come a long way from where they starteda few years ago, to the point where they can make available to theconsumer millions of product offers from thousands of locations aroundthe U.S. They produce relevant search results by weighting price,popularity and availability of the products, against the reputations ofthe merchants that sell them. This is achieved from collected ratingsfrom on-line buyers each month. These results, however, are relevantonly to the fact that most if not all of the indexed merchants are outof reach through conventional methods and they rely on the delivery oftheir products on third party couriers. The reputation of a merchant,however, is sometimes compromised and/or affected by the performance ofthe courier. Another limitation is that these merchants and theirability to compare their prices only available through the Internet.Millions of consumers do not have access to the Internet or areinexperienced in web searching. Moreover, these web based search enginesmake extensive disclaimers on the reliability of their sources and theaccuracy of their publications. The ratings of their merchants areinformative only for those wishing to use them, but they do notguarantee any level of performance by an online merchant or other thirdparty in any given transaction. The rating of their merchants are alsosubject to being manipulated or distorted and may undermine theintegrity and accuracy of the merchant ratings.

Design Goals—Improved Cost Comparison Methods

With the present invention system, the collection of base prices isachieved through the use of participant merchant UPC databases, wheretheir most current prices are stored and managed, any changes in theirprices are instantly relayed to the present invention database. A secondmethod of price collection is by capturing data at the point of activityby means of a hand held transceiver/scanner by consumers, relaying theprice information of non-participant merchants to the present inventionmain database.

Contrary to the existing methods for price collection and ratinginformation provided by online consumers, the information collected fromthe consumer is not incorporated in to the system until it is firstanalyzed and self-verified against the data provided by other consumersfor the same product at the same location, avoiding manipulation ordistortion which will undermine the integrity and accuracy of theprices. Moreover, the information provided by each of the consumers istraceable as each consumer once registered is assigned an identificationcode, a personalized transceiver/scanner and a membership card.Consumers receive an incentive for their participation on capturing andtransmitting price information to the system database. As they obtainand accumulate credits for each price transaction, these credits areapplied towards discounts on their purchases and are generated in theform of electronic coupons issued by manufacturers. On the other hand,someone who would provide erroneous information intentionally is subjectto be denied future participation.

Real-Time Performance

Some of the existing web based cost comparison search systems claim thattheir transactions are actually performed in real-time. By this theymean that they use the latest price available in their database, thisonly allows the consumers to evaluate what is available at thatparticular moment not knowing if the price was updated a minute ago or amonth ago or if it has been updated at all.

With the present invention system, there is a new meaning for the term“real-time”, where lowest prices are calculated in the precise momentrequested by the consumer, not only initially providing the basic pricefor each product from each merchant in any selected area, but actuallycompeting through a systematic bid process for the lowest price.

Bids are accomplished through the transaction arbiter. This transactionarbiter can be customized to vary the price of each of their productsdepending on various given parameters such as the day of the week, thetime of the day, a percentage discount, maximum and minimum limits,lowest price of all, a percentage under the lowest price, or many othercombinations, all in relation to the merchant's own prices or the pricesof their competitors.

System Features

Search by Product Category

The present invention capabilities are Universal, just like the productcode structure. It can be applied and configured to operate with anykind of products bearing the Universal Product Code print or label, oralternatively, just by a product description or model number. Aselection of product category is an option on the main menu of the webpage and the transceiver/scanner, this means that the main feature ofthe system, price biding, can be used at any level of the retailindustry, mainly groceries (ALBERTSON vs. KROGER vs. TOM THUMB vs.WALMART, etc.), home improvement products (LOWE'S vs. HOME DEPOT vs.ELLIOT'S vs. TRUE VALUE etc.), auto parts (AUTO ZONE vs. O'REILLEYetc.), Office products (OFFICE DEPOT vs. OFFICE MAX etc.) WholesaleClubs (SAM'S CLUB vs. COSTCO etc.), Pharmacies (ECKERD vs. WALGREEN'Setc.), and the list could go on and on with department stores, bookstores, tire stores, music stores, etc.

Additions can be made to the Universal Product Code structure forservice establishments such as oil change, brake service, enginetune-up, haircuts, laundry services, etc.

Searches by Area

This feature allows the consumer to conduct the search by severaloptions. Whether the consumers prefer to search by distance to theirhouse or place of work, by radius in mileage increments, in route to andfrom work or home, the nearest location, the lowest priced, the nearestopen location, the location that has the product in stock etc., all ofthe above and many others or any combinations are possible with thepresent invention mapping and global positioning system capabilities.

Best Price Calculation Options

All lowest price algorithmic calculations are initiated by firstdisplaying the various merchants base prices without any discounts. Alimit can be set up to display two or more merchants at a time. Thefirst selection of merchants can be initiated by proximity or otherbasic preferences. Once these few merchants are selected and their basicprices are displayed, the consumer will then initiate the bid processand the lowest price result is obtained within a few seconds based onthe algorithmic configuration of each individual merchant. The biddingprocess does not need to be attended by the participating merchants.

Lowest prices can be calculated for each individual product or for thesum of the price of all products.

By Time of Day

This is one of the features that allow the consumer to find the bestprice for the product or products being searched. Merchants have theoption to adjust their prices automatically by applying certainparameters in the algorithm. Some merchants will be interested inattracting consumers to their locations at times of day when sales arenormally slow, for example a grocery store that is normally open 24hours will like to reduce their prices an additional 5% after 10 pm or7% after midnight, that feature will play a decisive role for a consumerto determine if he or she goes to the nearest store which does not offera discount based on the time of the day or the one that is a littlefarther but offers a discount during certain time of the day.

By Day of the Week

A similar approach to the above is implemented based on the day of theweek, as merchants can reduce their prices on the days of the week whensales are slower.

By Percentage Under First Immediate Lowest Price

With this feature, a merchant can set up its individual algorithmicconfiguration to go under any reasonable competitor's lowest price andbeat it by a certain percentage in order to gain the business of theconsumer, a merchant can decide to implement this option on the asneeded basis depending on the supply and demand of the products orcompetitiveness and aggressiveness of other merchants, at the presenttime many merchants offer a lowest price guarantee promising to theconsumer to match or beat any competitors price. However, many timesthis is so difficult to achieve as consumers would have to go shoppingto many locations in order to determine who has the best price. Amerchant can also implement this feature as an option to self-guaranteethat it has the lowest prices in the area without having to physicallycompare prices or published promotions or sale specials.

By Maximums or Minimums

This feature allows merchants to set up their prices to be lower thanthe competition up to a certain maximum discount or minimum price. Withthis feature merchants will be safe of not over cutting their prices fora loss.

Other Features

As mentioned before the present invention utilizes three main channelsof operation and communication: the Internet and/or two differenttransceiver/scanners, one mobile and one stationary. All of the abovefeatures can be executed through any of these three with the exceptionof the global positioning system (GPS) feature available on the mobiletransceiver/scanner only, the option to select either is at theconsumer's discretion depending on accessibility, and affordability,etc.

The way the system takes advantage of the global positioning systemtechnology is for the consumers to be able to locate merchants inrelation to their mobility or location at any given time during the day.Whether it is on their way to or from work or school or an areaunfamiliar to them, consumers will be able to transmit their presentreal-time location to the database for determining the optimal choice ofmerchants in that area for an added convenience of shopping at remotelocations not necessarily close to their neighborhood but with amerchant offering even better prices. It is well known in the retailindustry that merchants base their prices merely on the economy andincome of families in the immediate area to their locations, some timesdoubling or tripling their profits based on this factor alone, so manyconsumers will prefer to purchase their products at the lowest pricedlocation not necessarily being close to their home or up classneighborhood but instead close or in their route to or from work orschool or a friend's or relative's home.

Custom Shopping List

Each consumer is able to set up and store his or her custom preparedshopping list, one that includes favorite products normally andrepeatedly purchased. This favorite list is easily edited to add ordelete certain products each shopping time using check all option, checkindividual items option, uncheck all option, etc.

Money Saved Feature

Each actual final purchase transaction can automatically be saved on thetransceiver as to keep a record and sum of the total savings. Thisfeature also helps to evaluate the overall results and advantages ofeach consumer purchasing practices.

Analysis of Purchasing Patterns and Advertisement Targeting

This feature serves to store information on products normally purchasedby the consumer. This information can be submitted to the presentinvention database on an optional basis to assist manufacturers intargeting their products and aiming brief graphic and voiceadvertisements and greetings to the consumer via the transceiver/scannerdisplay and to receive electronic coupons for additional discountdirectly from the manufacturer. This process will replace the existingmethod for consumers to mail their receipt and hardcopy UPC, andeliminate the need to wait up to three months or more to get theirmail-in rebate.

Two Way Retrieval/Transfer of Data Via Transceiver/Scanner or Website

The main function of the transceiver and website is to retrieve andtransfer information to and from the present invention database. Eachtime that the send/receive button is pressed an automatic sequence ofdownloads and updates is initiated, this process is also self-activatedeach time the system is less loaded facilitating and speeding up theprocess. The consumer transmits or transfers data captured through thescanner, also information on purchasing patterns, global positioncoordinates and other information. Simultaneously it retrieves from thepresent invention database any pertinent and applicable information anddata to enable the consumer to perform shopping activities alsoautomatic downloads are performed on customized greetings and graphicand voice adds.

Bid Confirmation/Verification

Each time a bid process is completed on the purchase of a product orproducts a confirmation/verification code is assigned for thetransaction, the approval code can be retrieved at the point of sale bymerchants at the time of check out with the use of the customer'smembership card, the same way a credit card transaction is processed andapproved via a credit card modem.

Product Price History/Antitrust Policing

With this feature, consumers can retrieve historical data of any productsuch as lowest or highest price ever sold, Merchant's records of salesand prices, time each merchant has been a participant, which merchantsare not participant, etc.

Anticompetitive collusion, Price Fixing, Bid Rigging and MarketAllocation Schemes can also be closely Monitored and policed with thisfeature.

System's Suggested Retail Price

Based on retail market statistics at any determined time, supply anddemand, profit margins and other relevant factors, the system can set upa fair market value for each product, as a suggested retail price formerchants to match, cut, or follow closely if desired.

Identification of Comparable Products

This feature allows the identification of similar products to the onesbeing searched. It promotes competition among similar retailers whichtheir strategy is to sell different brands than competitors but theproducts are almost identical, as to avoid an easy price comparison.

Storage and Retrieval of Merchant and Manufacturer History

With this feature historic data related to company's finances, number ofbids won, price history and the like can be exchanged.

System Architecture Overview

Following an overall discussion of the present invention architecture:

Network—

The network is based on a communication exchange Architecture thatprovides high speed networking and communication systems that can movevolumes of product data in real-time.

Wireless PSA's—

This feature uses hand held PSA's that are capable of running networkrelated applications and are equipped with additional integratedhardware, such as a cell phone, a reading barcode scanner or radiofrequency identification applications, and a global positioning system.

Wired PSA's—

This feature uses wired countertop telephones that are also capable ofrunning network related applications and are equipped with additionalintegrated hardware such as, a reading barcode scanner or radiofrequency identification applications, an LCD, and a printer.

Servers—

Are used to crunch and analyze the data in real-time. The variousservers among other functions compress and store each of the Merchantsinformation and their multiple lists of products in to a repository.

Application—

The application glues the components of this system together. It plays akey role as the main mediating unit for the integration of data, it ispositioned between data sources and output formats in the form of a datarepository. The software serves as the main technological interface forthe exchange and delivery of information.

The technical aspects of the application include:

Flexibility of Data Formats and Protocols—

The application runs on a server and provides for the connection betweenvarious data sources and output formats. Consumer inquiries can be ofany protocol, processed with the corresponding connector.

Virtual Repository of Information—

The application functions like a large index database, through whichrequested content is “found” in its corresponding data source.

The present invention data structures are optimized so that a large filecan be accessed and searched efficiently.

SUMMARY

The system is designed to be a scalable search engine. The primary goalis to provide high quality low price search results over a rapidlygrowing and improved retail market. The system employs a number oftechniques that make it unique in pricing options and quality.Furthermore, the system is a complete architecture for gathering anddisseminating information. In addition to being a high quality searchengine, the system is a search tool necessary for a wide range ofapplications.

Data Flow (0600, 0700, 0800)

The data flow associated with the present invention is generallyillustrated in FIG. 6 (0600), FIG. 7 (0700), and FIG. 8 (0800). Withinthis context, Individual Systems can be assigned to cities asillustrated in FIG. 6 (0600).

Referencing FIG. 7 (0700), Individual Zip Code maps are then segregatedinto different merchant categories maps. These can be (for example)grocery Stores, Home Improvement Stores, Auto Part Stores, OfficeProduct Stores, Wholesale Clubs, Pharmacies, Department Stores, BookStores, Tire Stores, Music Stores, etc.

Each Zip Code map along with each individual store data, is linked andforms an integral part of the system for the exchange of data.

Each individual store maintains its individual database and shares itwith the transaction arbiter system.

Remote Transceivers such as a Cell Phone and a Home phone are used toexchange information and data with the system. The main function of thetransceivers is to retrieve, transfer and display information to andfrom the system. Each time that the send/receive button is pressed anautomatic sequence of downloads and updates are initiated, this processis also self-activated during low usage hours. The consumer transmits ortransfers data captured through the scanner, also information onpurchasing patterns, global positioning coordinates and otherinformation. Simultaneously it retrieves from the present inventiondatabase any pertinent and applicable information and data to enable theconsumer to perform shopping activities also automatic downloads areperformed on customized greetings and graphic or voice commercial adds.

The transaction arbiter system is also accessible thru the Internet bymeans of a Personal Computer.

Referencing FIG. 8 (0800), each shopping transaction is automaticallylinked to a credit card or membership card database, the relevantinformation as well as a transaction confirmation number can beretrieved via the transceiver or via a credit card reader at anymerchant location. Payment options can also be selected and executedthis technique.

Transaction and payment information is exchanged betweencredit/membership card database and the system. With this feature allshopping transactions can be prepaid and then verified at any merchantlocation.

Overall Scope (0900)

The present invention is represented in FIG. 9 (0900) where the overallscope is generally depicted, in particular, how the consumer willbenefit from free and open competition among merchants resulting inlower prices. This is achieved through a systematic real-time unattendedprocess that permits consumers to interact with merchants over acommunication network and obtain brokered deals for services ormerchandise by means of bidding functions selected and customized byeach specific merchant and present the optimal possible bid to arequest-for-quote generated by the consumer. The customized parametersare only known to each specific merchant and the transaction arbiter andcannot be viewed by other merchants as to promote fair competition.

Consumer Data and Parameters (1000)

FIG. 10 (1000) illustrates the basic means for interaction betweenconsumer and merchants and provides a source for the consumer to inputparameters and data specific to each product for which a quote is beingrequested. This process is further described in FIG. 12 (1200).

Item (1002) represents the source for participating merchants to inputtheir specific parameters and data relative to their field and productsbeing offered. This process is better described in FIG. 13 (1300).

Item (1003) represents the source for participating manufacturers toinput their specific parameters and data relative to their field andproducts being offered. This process is better described in FIG. 14(1400).

Item (1004) represents a file server where information, data and historyrelative to participating merchants is stored, linked and synchronizedto other functions, such as product database, location, number of bidswon, schedules, average product price, lowest product price, financialstatistics, and many others. All of this information can be accessed byconsumers during a request for quotation.

Item (1005) represents a file server where information, data and historyrelative to participating manufacturers is stored, linked andsynchronized to other functions, such as product database, electroniccoupon scheme, average product price, lowest product price, financialstatistics and many others. All of this information can be accessed byconsumers during a request for quotation.

Item (1006) the algorithmic functions of the transaction arbiter aredescribed in detail in FIGS. 15-32.

Item (1007) bid tabulation, displays the collection of bid resultsreflecting the lowest prices being offered by the various participatingmerchants for the consumer to select and confirm (1008).

Consumer Login (1200)

FIG. 12 (1200) represents the flow of steps to be followed by a consumerfrom beginning to end during any given transaction in arequest-for-quote. Depending on the method used to access the system,FIG. 12 could be representative of a web site, a display screen on acommunication device, or any other method where (1200) will be a blockwhere an ID or password are to be logged in to gain initial access in tothe system.

Item (1201) gives the consumer the ability to select an area where thesearch is going to be conducted, which can be limited to a specific zipcode or codes, an area radius, a remote location, GPS coordinates, etc.Once this choice is made, the consumer is to input the description ofthe product being priced (1202), by following steps (1205, 1206, 1207)or in the case that the consumer is using a scanning enabled device suchas a cell phone with UPC scanner, then the data on a specific productcan be directly captured and relayed to the system (1203). This processis to be repeated for each of the products (1209) being priced and thefinal choices are to be transferred on to a shopping cart/list (1208).With each of these steps, the extent of the search in the presentinvention database is being narrowed considerably facilitating thebidding transaction.

Once the above steps are completed, the bid process is initiated (1210).It is at this time when parameters previously customized by eachmerchant are put in to action.

During steps (1205, 1206) flags can be displayed on the products towhich manufacturers have previously linked a particular discount, rebateor electronic coupon, this feature will play a decisive role for aconsumer in the selection of a product, specially if an additionaldiscount is being offered by the manufacturer. These electronic couponscan be applied towards the winning bid from a merchant for an even lowerprice (1211).

Once the final price on the product or products has been obtained, thenext step is to proceed to the checkout (1212) where the consumer canprepay for the products being purchased and obtain a transactionconfirmation number to be presented at the merchant's location forcollection of the articles purchased (1213).

FIG. 13 (1300) represents the steps to be followed by a participatingmerchant on the maintenance and updating of their schema and/orparameters where after logging in (1300) they can proceed to link andsynchronize their product base price database with the present inventionproduct database (1301), each merchant location, maintains, stores andupdates their individual database to minimize the size of the presentinvention data storage capacity. The present invention server willconnect to the merchant's server once a consumer has selected themerchant. Once the product databases have been linked and synchronized,the various products are sorted in to individual groups to which thesame function parameters are to be applied (1302). It is anticipatedthat merchants will prefer to designate specific parameters to a largegroup of products instead of designating specific parameters to each andevery of their hundreds or thousands of products.

Two of the main parameters to be applied by merchants to each group ofproducts are (1303) a percentage number, in increments of 1%, toundercut the lowest competitor's price from the group of merchantsselected by the consumer, and (1304) the maximum cut to be applied to aproduct in relation to the merchant's own base price as to avoid theprice being over cut for a loss in the event that the competitor's priceis too low. The application of these two main parameters can becustomized at different schedules by time and day of the week (1305).Also refer to FIGS. 15 and 16.

FIG. 14 (1400) is representative of the steps to be followed by aparticipating manufacturer on the maintenance and updating of theirschema and/or parameters where after logging in (1400) they can proceedto link and synchronize their product database with the presentinvention product database (1401), each manufacturer, maintains andupdates their individual parameters which can be synchronized with thepresent invention database at predetermined intervals or each time achange has been made. Once the product databases have been linked andsynchronized, the various products are sorted in to individual groups towhich the same function parameters are to be applied (1402). It isanticipated that manufacturers will prefer to designate specificparameters to a group of products instead of designating specificparameters to each and every of their products. The application of theseparameters can be customized at different schedules by time and day ofthe week (1403).

FIG. 15 (1500) illustrates a generalized arbitrage method and how thelowest price for any given product or products are determined, where(1510, 1520, 1530, 1540) are representative of the group of parametersselected by each participating merchant as detailed in items (1303,1304). The amount of merchant data boxes depends on the number ofmerchants selected by a consumer during any given request for quotation,depending on the search range as defined under FIG. 12. A four merchantformat has been adopted for the purpose of this example. Parameters(1513, 1514, 1523, 1524, 1533, 1534, 1543, 1544) are hidden and are onlyknown and available to be viewed by each correspondent merchant, theseare customized as necessary on the merchant's input page, only the baseprice (1512, 1522, 1532, 1542) and the name of the merchant are to bedisplayed on an interactive screen for the consumer to use.

Items (1512, 1522, 1532, 1542), are indicative of the regular base pricefor the item being quoted, this price would be the price which themerchant will normally sell the product to the general public withoutany discount. Items (1513, 1523, 1533, 1543) are indicative of themaximum discount which the merchant is willing to give in order to sellthe product to a participant consumer requesting a quote. Items (1514,1524, 1534, 1544) are indicative of the percentage which the merchant iswilling to go under the lowest competitor price, each group of merchantparameters interact with other parameters generated by competingmerchants to achieve a dynamic unattended bidding process betweenmerchants in response to a customer request-for-quote.

Item (1505), illustrates an exemplary format on how the name of thevarious participating merchants (A, B, C, D) and their correspondingbase prices are presented to the consumer in preparation for the biddingprocess, once the consumer decides to initiate the bidding process, the“compete” button (1506) is activated and the automatic bidding processis performed, once completed, the final results are displayed in a(1507) format for the consumer to pick the optimum price which in thecase of this example is merchant B and the final best price is $104.42.

Between steps (1505) and (1507), a sequence of calculations is performeduntil the factors of all of the merchant parameters have beenimplemented and have reached their limit. A detailed example of thissequence is represented in FIG. 16 (1600) where item (1601) shows theresults obtained after the first round of the sequence where it can beappreciated that all of the merchant prices have been reduced inrelation to the lowest starting price of one of the competitors, beingcompetitor “C” with a price of $129.95, therefore merchant “A” went 2%under $129.95 for a new price of $127.35, the price of merchant “B” went1% under $129.95 for a new price of $128.65, the price of merchant “C”remained the same as it was already the lowest, and the price ofmerchant “D” went 1% under $129.95 for a new price of $128.65.

Since none of the four competing merchants reached their maximumdiscount price (A—23%), (B—38%), (C—15%) and (D—25%) the process isrepeated on a second round (loop) and so on.

On the 8^(th) round or step (1608), it can be appreciated thatparticipating merchant “C” reached its maximum discount of (15%) for aminimum price of $110.54, this merchant is now out of the biddingprocess. This figure is repeated on subsequent rounds indicating that ithas reached its maximum.

On the 9^(th) round or step (1609), it can be appreciated thatparticipating merchant “D” reached its maximum discount of (25%) for aminimum price of $109.49, this merchant is now out of the biddingprocess. This figure is repeated on subsequent rounds indicating that ithas reached its maximum.

On the 11^(th) round or step (1611), it can be appreciated thatparticipating merchant “A” reached its maximum discount of (23%) for aminimum price of $105.48, this merchant is now out of the biddingprocess. This figure is repeated on the last round indicating that ithas reached its maximum.

On the last round or step (1507) participating merchant “B” goes 1%under the then lowest price of $105.48 for a new final and lowest priceof $104.42. It should be noted that the winning merchant did not have togo to its maximum discount of 38% or $97.95 to win the bid but onlyapplied the preset 1% under the lowest competing merchant as the lowestcompeting merchant had already reached its maximum discount.

The entire process described above is started and completed instantly atthe click of a button.

Exemplary Software Screen Shots (2000, 2100, 2200)

The present invention may incorporate bid arbitration functions that aregenerally illustrated in the exemplary software code sequencesillustrated in FIGS. 23-32. Exemplary screen shots of softwareimplementing these basic bidding functions are illustrated in FIGS.20-22.

FIG. 20 illustrates a situation in which a baseline set product prices($136.99, $157.99, $129.95, $145.99) are associated with variousmerchants who have associated fixed minimum price point discountpercentages (23%, 38%, 15%, 25%) and associated price reductionpercentages (2%, 1%, 2%, 1%). FIG. 20 illustrates the situation in whichthe merchants simultaneously bid against one another to produce a lowestterminal price point ($105.48, $104.43, $110.46, $109.49) for eachmerchant, with the lowest price of $104.43 being the winning bid.

FIGS. 21-22 illustrate a similar initial condition for the merchantswith each screen indicating the results after one pass of the merchantbidding function. As can be seen, the results for each merchant bid willbe modified based on the results of other merchant bids and the functionconstraints posed by the merchant functions.

One skilled in the art will recognize that these figures illustrate onlyexemplary implementations of bidding functions for individual merchantsand that there are a wide variety of functions possible for a givenmerchant to respond to bids placed by other merchants and constraintparameters posed by the consumer.

Exemplary Software Code (2300-3200)

The present invention may be implemented using a variety of softwarecode sequences, but an exemplary preferred implementation is illustratedin FIGS. 23-32 (2300, 2400, 2500, 2600, 2700, 2800, 2900, 3000, 3100,3200). One skilled in the art will recognize that a wide variety ofimplementations are possible using the teachings of the presentinvention, and the illustrated code sequences are only one of a widevariety of possible implementations.

Telephone/PDA Hosting

The present invention anticipates that the transaction arbiter and/ormerchant function database may be hosted by a telephone (wired orwireless) or a PDA, collectively referred to as a “telephone” in thisdocument.

Merchant Function Selection

The present invention anticipates that the merchant functions thatcomprise the merchant function database may be stock or predefinedfunctions defined by the transaction arbiter but selected by theindividual merchants, or alternatively completely unique functionsdefined by each individual merchant participating in the transactionarbiter environment. In the latter case, the merchants may incorporateproprietary sales analysis and pricing methodologies as well as usinghistory of past successful and unsuccessful bidding results to modifytheir bidding strategy dynamically for future RFQs.

Unattended Bid Evaluation

The present invention anticipates that in many preferred embodiments thetransaction arbiter will evaluate merchant functions to determine thewinning bid in an unattended and autonomous manner, without humanassistance. This methodology permits simultaneous evaluation of allmerchant functions to determine the optimal bid price for a given set ofcustomer RFQ parameters.

Communications Variations

The present invention anticipates that a wide variety of communicationmethodologies may be applicable to connect the customer to thetransaction arbiter, permitting placement of RFQs and return of firmprice bids. Additionally, merchants may interact with the transactionarbiter and the merchant function database in a wide variety of ways,using both direct and indirect communication through the transactionarbiter. The transaction arbiter in many circumstances may perform otherfunctions in addition to maintenance of the merchant function database,including statistical analysis of RFQs, successful and unsuccessfulbids, and resulting optimal price bids. This information may in somepreferred embodiments be shared with the merchants and/or merchantfunctions to enhance system performance and permit more optimal biddingby merchants.

System Variations

The present invention anticipates a wide variety of variations in thebasic theme of construction. The examples presented previously do notrepresent the entire scope of possible usages. They are meant to cite afew of the almost limitless possibilities.

CONCLUSION

A transaction arbiter system and method has been disclosed whichincorporates a merchant function database under control of a transactionarbiter that permits merchants to interact in an automated way with bidsgenerated by other merchants. Rather than utilizing fixed priceschedules as taught by the prior art, the present invention permits eachmerchant to define a set of functions which describe how the merchantwill respond to a customer request-for-quote for a given product orservice. These merchant functions interact with both the customerrequest-for-quote and the results of other merchant functions togenerate a dynamic real-time bidding system which integrates competitionamong merchant bidders to achieve an optimal consumer price for a givenproduct or service.

Although a preferred embodiment of the present invention has beenillustrated in the accompanying drawings and described in the foregoingDetailed Description, it will be understood that the invention is notlimited to the embodiments disclosed, but is capable of numerousrearrangements, modifications, and substitutions without departing fromthe spirit of the invention as set forth and defined by the followingclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An improved multifunctional mobile communicationdevice to implement a wide range of mobile software applications atremote points of activity via at least one high-speed mobile cellulardata communication network in real-time or near real-time, comprising: adevice housing; an interactive display screen generating at least oneuser interface; at least part of a data communication exchangearchitecture; a plurality of installed mobile software applications ofwhich at least one of said plurality of installed mobile softwareapplications involves bid transactions on a product or service includingthe location of the multifunctional mobile communication device; aplurality of integrated data processing components; a plurality ofintegrated data capturing components; a plurality of integrated datacommunication components of which at least one of said plurality ofintegrated data communication components is configured to be operativelyconnected to a at least one high-speed mobile cellular datacommunication network; said plurality of integrated data communicationcomponents and said at least part of a data communication exchangearchitecture configured for improving the speed of data processing anddata transmission and implementing a plurality of integrated datacommunication methodologies including at least one high-speed mobilecellular data communication network; said at least one high-speed mobilecellular data communication network being configured for simultaneoustwo-way transmission of data to and from a remote application serversystem, said remote application server system comprising at least onedatabase storing provider data relating to one or more providers of saidproducts or services; said improved multifunctional mobile communicationdevice performing a method comprising: (a) Selecting from the pluralityof installed mobile software applications at least one mobile softwareapplication involving bid transactions on a product or service; (b)downloading via the at least one high-speed mobile cellular datacommunication network updates for the plurality of installed mobilesoftware applications; (c) capturing data via one or more of theplurality of integrated data capturing components including the locationof the multifunctional mobile communication device; (d) processing datavia one or more of said plurality of integrated data processingcomponents via the at least one mobile software application involvingbid transactions on a product or service; (e) connecting themultifunctional mobile communication device using one or more of theplurality of integrated communication components with the remoteapplication server system via the at least one high-speed mobilecellular communication network; (f) transmitting the data captured andprocessed by one or more of the plurality of integrated data capturingand processing components to the remote application server system viathe at least one high-speed mobile cellular data communication network;said data comprising bidding parameters for a particular product orservice including the location of the multipurpose mobile communicationdevice; (g) receiving in real-time or near real-time at the remoteapplication server system the data transmitted from the multifunctionalmobile communication device; said remote application server systemstoring executable instructions that configure one or more processorsto; preprocess provider data identifying from among a plurality ofproviders, a group of one or more providers that are associated with alocation within a threshold distance of the current geographic locationof the multifunctional mobile device; identify, from among the pluralityof providers, a subgroup of one or more providers providing theparticular product or service; access one or more functions to be usedfor the subgroup of the one or more providers; wherein at least one ofsaid functions defines an algorithm that, when performed, arbitrates abid; assemble, format and configure the provider data, the product orservice data the bid data, the captured data and at least one bidadjusting functions in preparation for run time; determine a bid for atleast one provider of the subgroup of the one or more providers;provide, in real-time or near real-time via the at least one high-speedmobile cellular data communication network, the bid for at least onecorresponding provider from the subgroup of the one or more providers;(h) generating a result by the remote application server system; (i)receiving at the multifunctional mobile communication device inreal-time or near real-time from the remote application server systemvia the at least one high-speed mobile cellular data communicationnetwork bid information generated by the remote application serversystem.
 2. The improved multifunctional mobile communication device ofclaim 1, wherein the integrated components comprise scanning components,GPS components, cellular telephone components, and wirelesscommunication components.
 3. The improved multifunctional mobilecommunication device of claim 1, wherein the integrated data processingcomponents comprise one or more mobile operating systems.
 4. Theimproved multifunctional mobile communication device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of integrated data communications components arefurther configured for performing a plurality of functions, theplurality of functions comprising functions for data routing andtransferring, mobility management functions, and network accessfunctions.
 5. The improved multifunctional mobile communication deviceof claim 1, where in the plurality of integrated data communicationcomponents are further configured for exchanging, handing over andestablishing a connection from, to and between a plurality of cellularand non-cellular wireless communication methods via at least one of thecommunication methodologies or a combination of communicationmethodologies as required for each of the plurality of mobile softwareapplications for the transmission of data files specific to eachindividual communication event and data format.
 6. The improvedmultifunctional mobile communication device of claim 1 wherein one ormore of the plurality of mobile software applications interact withvariable combinations of the data capturing components and the dataprocessing components generating customized queries to the remote serversystem.
 7. The improved multifunctional mobile communication device ofclaim 1, wherein one or more of the plurality of software applicationsare configured to be executed via the one or more data processingcomponents, the one or more of the plurality of mobile softwareapplications comprising instructions for at least one of: displaying anelectronic document on the interactive screen display wherein theelectronic document includes a plurality of user input elements thatinclude a respective user input element and performing at least one ofseveral functions.
 8. The improved multifunctional mobile communicationdevice of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of mobilesoftware applications is a mobile software application managerapplication being configured to manage and disseminate other mobileapplications at the request of the user of the multipurpose mobilehand-held devise.